Palos Verdes Intermediate School

By: Gabriella Rudy

8th Grade

Teacher: Vicky Lawson

Palos Verdes Intermediate School

Could A Moon Base Be The Key To The Truth About Natural Selection?

The theory of natural selection is one of the most controversial theories in our world today. It is accepted worldwide by most, but there are many who have their doubts on whether or not its content is true. Charles Darwin’s theory has been tested and proven correct many times on Earth, but if it were tested on the moon, could we finally know for sure its dependability? If we were to have a base on the moon, then we could see if this famous theory still holds true in space, by observing single-celled organisms called archaea over generations.

One of the most important contributions to the science of evolution is the concept of natural selection. The idea that members of a species compete with each other for resources and that individuals that are better adapted to their surroundings have a better chance of surviving to reproduce revolutionized the field of evolution (Sparknotes). That is, complex creatures evolve from more simplistic ancestors, such as archaea. The offspring with the more superior traits will outlive the inferior offspring, therefore passing on those successful traits to the next generations (Sparknotes). Because archaea have such a short life span and reproduce so quickly, it would be easy to test the theory on them on a moon base.

Archaea are single-celled microorganisms that are prokaryotes. This means that they have no nucleus or cell membrane. They have an extremely short life span and reproduce quickly and asexually through binary fission (Hogan). Archaea are all part of the bacteria family, and were once called archaebacteria. But the main reason that the archaea would be the optimal test subject for the moon base is that they live in extreme environments. The moon has so little an atmosphere that it’s negligible. Because of this tiny atmosphere, the moon’s temperature goes to extremes while Earth’s stays fairly constant (Celine). This information tells us that the archaea would most likely thrive on the moon base, therefore producing the most reliable test results.

Having a moon base would allow us to take the knowledge we already have about the differences between the Earth and moon, and see if applying those changes over an extended period of time on a select species of microorganisms (in this case archaea) would change the outcome of natural selection in a significant way. One of these differences is that surface gravity is more than 6 times stronger on Earth than on the moon. We know that humans can come back from a stay on the moon at least 2 inches taller than they were when they left, but what would happen to archaea? Earth also has a massive global magnetic field, while the moon has a very small one with no magnetic poles. The magnetic poles protect Earth from dangerous space particles that could enter the planet and harm everything living on it (Celine). They also protect us from other higher energy particle radiation that could endanger life on Earth. This harmful radiation is forced to drift around the Earth, and could even enter the moons atmosphere (Celine). This would most certainly affect archaea, and it could possibly cause a mutation or genetic disorder in future offspring. Lastly, due to the abundant life on Earth, its atmosphere, and water features, Earth is in a constant state of change (Celine). Because the moon has none of these, any changes that occur are caused by outside forces. These outside forces may change the behavior of archaea.

A moon base would help us learn more about the Earth in so many ways. One of these ways would be proving once and for all whether or not the theory of natural selection is true. If it is, then it should take affect on the moon as well as on Earth. The moon base would allow scientists to be stationed on the moon for extended periods of time, and allow them to conduct the most reliable research. They would be able to stay on the moon as the archaea went through many generations and spot the changes in their traits more easily as they began to show up. Archaea would be the best test subjects because they are single-celled, which means it would be simple to detect and analyze any changes throughout their generations. They are also able to survive in extreme climates and the moon is one of the most extreme climates we know of today. Finding out the validity of this passionately debated concept is something that the world has been waiting for since Charles Darwin first proposed the theory, and a moon base might be the key to the truth.

Bibliography

Celine. "Differences Between the Earth and Moon." Difference Between. N.p., 01 Oct. 2010. Web. 08 Apr. 2016. <http://www.differencebetween.net/science/nature/differences-between-the-earth-and-moon/>.

Hogan, Michael C. "What Are Archaea?" Encyclopedia of Life. Ed. Emily Monosson. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Apr. 2016. <www.eol.org/info.457>.

Natural Selection." Sparknotes. B&N, 2016. Web. 8 Apr. 2016. <www.sparknotes.com/biology/evolution/naturalselection/summary/html>.